Christmas jeer: Kentucky governor's 'holiday tree' angers critics

Cleveland.com ^ | October 28, 2009 | ROGER ALFORD

[Pinkbell]

FRANKFORT, Kentucky -- Gov. Steve Beshear has angered some Christians with his yuletide terminology.

A giant evergreen that will brighten the Capitol lawn this winter won't be called a Christmas tree. Instead, the Beshear administration has dubbed it a "holiday tree."

The Rev. Jeff Fugate, pastor of Clays Mill Baptist Church in Lexington, said Christians find the change troubling.

"If you call it a holiday tree," Fugate asked, "which holiday are you talking about? We don't put up a holiday tree for Easter or New Year's or Thanksgiving. We put a tree up for Christmas."

Beshear administration spokeswoman Cindy Lanham said the tree will be in celebration of a variety of winter holidays, including Christmas and Hanukkah.

"This is a special time of the year for many Kentuckians," she said.

The spat in Kentucky is only the latest in an ongoing Christmas debate. Some retailers, including Wal-Mart, have returned to greeting customers with "Merry Christmas" after coming under attack for directing employees to say "Happy Holidays."

In Kentucky, political foes are using the issue to bash the Democratic governor and his administration.

"Steve Beshear in his continued swing to the left shows that political correctness is more important than Kentucky values," said Republican Senate President David Williams of Burkesville. "It is difficult to see how anyone could take offense at the cherished tradition of Christmas at the Kentucky Capitol."

Beshear spokeswoman Jill Midkiff said the terminology is intended to be inclusive.

"Obviously, to Governor Beshear and the first lady, who are both Christians, it is certainly a Christmas tree," Midkiff said. "What is important is to remember what this time of year is all about — family and caring for those less fortunate."

[Pinkbell]

Libs at it again under the guise of not wanting to "offend" anyone.

[Pinkbell]

Ping!

[digital-olive]

Last year I had a customer leaving the store and I said: "Merry Christmas."

He stopped and looked shocked for a few seconds, then told me how happy he was to not hear "Happy Holidays."

[borntobeagle]

bump for later

[GiovannaNicoletta]

We spend the last fifty years doing everything we can to remove God from America and then can't understand why we have Barack Obama for president, why we have an 18% unemployment rate, why we are about to have the federal government deciding who lives and dies under the guise of "reformed health care", why we are losing freedoms on a daily basis. I guess, as usual, God meant what He said when He told us:

Psalm 9:17:

The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

All the problems we have in this nation and what does the governor of Kentucky worry about? Making sure that "Christmas tree" gets renamed to "holiday tree".

Don't expect anything to improve in this country.

[Pinkbell]

I agree 100%.

[grobdriver]

Cut the sucker down.

[Adder]

Its just silly:

The tree is a Christmas tree: its not a passover bush or some Ramadan whatever.

Its a Christmas tree. it doesn’t matter what its roots are or how the Romans did Saturnalia...For the last umpteen years its been a Christmas tree.

Jeez...some people.

[GnL]

It’s a Kwanzaa weed.

[fieldmarshaldj]

This bullcrap was pulled in Nashville when our f**kwit ex-Mayor called it the same thing. He was widely lampooned for it.